Böcker av Samuel Parkison

Today, the doctrine of the beatific vision has been woefully forgotten within the church and its theology.Yet, throughout history Christians have always held that the blessed hope of heaven lies in seeing and being in the presence of God, of beholding the beatific vision. With lucidity and breadth, Parkison reintroduces the beatific vision and affirms its centrality for the life of the church today. Parkison argues for the beatific vision's biblical foundations and reminds us--through close readings of theologians such as Anselm of Canterbury, Thomas Aquinas, Dante, Gregory Palamas, John Calvin, and Jonathan Edwards--of the doctrine's historical and contemporary significance. The beatific vision is about seeing God, and as Christians have acknowledged across the tradition, seeing God is our ultimate end.

"For the weapons of our warfare are not of flesh but have divine power to destroy strong-holds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). Life in Western civilization is rapidly changing. In such a cultural landscape, it can be overwhelming for Christians to find the bearings. How should they think about same-sex "marriage"? Or transgenderism and the concept of "preferred personal pronouns"? Or the ever-confounding topic of racism? Or technology and transhumanism? How should Christians think about their involvement on social media? Or their consumption of entertainment? And does their Christianity have anything to do with these matters at all? In Thinking Christianly, Samuel Parkison demonstrates an exercise in obedience to 2 Corinthians 10:4-5; he labors to bring sundry thoughts captive to Christ. Sacred cows are not spared in this collection of short essays. Parkison is concerned with showing how Christ's lordship applies to how Christians thinking about everything, including the many perplexing and novel issues Christians face today.